‘Arrow’ Review: The ‘League of Assassins’ Comes for Sara

Tonight’s episode of Arrow is arguably the best one the series has done to date. We have to admit that we were quite skeptical when it was announced that someone other than Laurel would be Black Canary and it was even harder to swallow when it was spoiled that the vigilante was Laurel’s sister, who everyone thought was dead. We pretty much assumed the worst was going to happen.

But Sara already started winning us over last week and “League of Assassins” landed us solely in her corner. As her journey unfolded in flashbacks and we got to see just how broken she remains in the present, it was impossible not to be completely engaged from start to finish. And while we understand why Sara decided to leave, we’re already eagerly awaiting her return because we need more of this character on our screens. In other words, you win, show. This was a great decision and we support it.

So let’s backtrack and talk about the episode. Sara was staying with Oliver at the Queen mansion and it was kind of nice to see them just hanging out…even if it only lasted for about a minute before an assassin broke into the house and picked a fight. He also dropped Malcolm Merlyn’s name and said that he was his teacher (we’re just going to go right ahead and assume that it’s the first hint the Dark Archer is still among the living).

After the fight, Oliver took Sara to the Arrow Cave and introduced her to Dig and Felicity. Again, we have to hand it to the show for how seamlessly Sara fit right in with Team Arrow (loved her calling Felicity ‘cute’ when our favorite IT girl had one of her awkward moments). Oliver wanted to know more about the League so they could track them down, but Sara wasn’t interested in that because she knew they didn’t really stand a chance against them. She just wanted to make sure her family was safe.

Felicity headed out to warn Detective Lance and this was a great scene too. We’re big fans of the strange friendship they’ve developed. But even when Felicity dropped the ‘League of Assassins’ bomb, the detective (officer, whatever) was not interested in making a run for it. Arrow and Canary did end up taking a shot at the league, but that didn’t go well (even if the battle scenes were fun to watch). Despite her injuries, Sara wasn’t going to leave her father unprotected.

But the only way for her to make him understand was for her to reveal herself, which she did. We are a sucker for family scenes of any kind so we can freely admit there were tears shed during the diner reunion. Sara was so scared that her father wouldn’t love her anymore after all the things that she’d done, but he quickly made her see that wasn’t the case and it was the best.

While they were bonding, Oliver was in charge of keeping Laurel safe, which was a little uncomfortable since earlier in the episode Laurel joined the prosecution team that is seeking the death penalty in his mother’s trial. But Laurel told Oliver she’d used all her clout to get Moira a deal that would mean life in prison. She also told Oliver that she was tired of him asking if she was okay so he was careful not to do that when he went to invite her to have dinner with a friend.

Things must have went well because when Oliver walked her back to her apartment, Laurel went in for a kiss and Oliver pulled back. That was so awkward and we felt bad for Laurel once again. This woman seriously cannot catch a break. And if that wasn’t enough to deal with, the assassins had been in her apartment while they were out, but Oliver hid that evidence from her and said good night, leaving Laurel alone to take more pills (ugh, still hate this part of the story).

Sara takes her father to her clock tower hideout and explains to him that it’s not safe for her to come back and he can’t tell Laurel or their mother that she’s alive. To illustrate her point, the League tracks her down again and Sara and Detective Lance start fighting them off before Arrow arrives to help them out. It’s another fun action scene, but sadly, this one ends with Sara taking off into the night. We understand why she needs to run, but please, please come back soon.

Moira agrees to fight for her life, which makes Oliver and Thea happy. Oliver returns to the Arrow Cave and has a drink with Dig. He admits that he’s tired of keeping everything that happened to him bottled up inside and tells Dig that in the five years that he was gone, he didn’t spend the entire time on the island. Cue the flashback: this one shows Oliver being thrown into a room and when he looks up, Sara is standing over him. He starts to question her and she kicks him and coldly says, “Prisoners do not speak.”

Damn. We complain about island flashbacks a lot, but we definitely want to see more of these Oliver/Sara/League of Assassin moments. We’re curious how Oliver ended up back on the island, what happened between him and Sara that made him think she was dead again and probably a ton of other questions that we haven’t even thought of yet, but we’ll be tuning in to find out the answers.

What did you guys think? Are you sad Sara is already gone? What do you think will bring her back? What happened between Sara and Oliver and the League of Assassins? Hit the comments and share your thoughts with us!

About the author

Mandy Treccia

Mandy Treccia has served as TVSource Magazine’s Executive Editor since 2016, formerly as Editorial Director from 2012-2016. She is an avid TV watcher and card carrying fan girl prone to sudden bursts of emotion, ranging from extreme excitement to blind rage during her favorite shows and has on more than once occasion considered having a paper bag on hand to get her through some tough TV moments. Her taste in TV tends to rival that of a thirteen-year-old girl, but she’s okay with that. Follow her on Twitter at @SourceMandy.